Skip to main content

Stop the Stigma

An excerpt from Kathy Cronkite's On The Edge of Darkness.  Kathy Cronkite continues to battle the stigma associated with Depression and speaks on the topic.  You can read her bio with the American Program Bureau here.  This passage is a quote from William Stryon, author of Darkness Visible, struggled with Depression his whole life and I think the excerpt below illustrates my own feelings on Depression and overcoming the shame
                             and stigma associated with it. 

It would lesson my sense of a person's integrity if I learened that he or she had suffered from depression and had hidden it.  I honor or respect whatever presonal reasons they had for that, but I would feel far more respect for people who fully face up to the fact that they have had an illness and tell the world.  I think its a matter of responsibility, because the illness will contyinue to be stigmatized as people try to hide the fact that they've had it.    
Traditionally, people have had fear and repugnance for mental illness, that somehow its spooky.  I read about a poll recently which found that [almost] 50 percent of American people, Mr. and Mrs. Frontporch, believes that there is a moreal incapacity in depression.  On 50 percent, on the other hand, is aware that it is a mental illness to which no moral stigma should be attached.
Granted those figures are probably much different now as this book was published in 1994 but, the idea remains the same.  No one should have to hide the fact that they suffer from a disease.  I know that I have been guilty of doing just that in my own life.  I hid the fact that I had depression and didn't admit it, even to myself, for years.  So part of my mission in sharing this with you is to spread the word that Depression is a disease and that you shouldn't hide it.  We need to show the world that Depression is a disease that may not be curable but is treatable and that no moral stigma should ever be attached to a disease that you truly have no control over.  So go to your library and pick up a copy of Darkness Visible, On The Edge of Darkness or another book about mental health and give it a read.  The more we know, the better we can combat it, so help stop the stigma, educate yourself about mental health. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Your Blog: Resume Boost or Liability?

I have recently read two different blogs that have both touched on the same topic. How your blog affects your resume and/or job search. The first was an interview with Sasha Halima, one of my favorite bloggers, at PR Breakfast Club. You can read it here. The second is on Brand Yourself, Your Blog is Your Extended Resume . Brand Yourself argues just what the title says that a blog is an extended resume and that when a potential employer searches for you and finds a blog full of fabulous content, they'll hire you. And while I couldn't agree more that I AGONIZED over the fact that potential employers were most likely Googling me and getting results for some person in Seattle or a Blues Singer in New York the interview with Sasha Halima said something that also struck a chord with me. Your blog can be a "liability." That is the scariest word that any potential employer could ever say because, if you're a liability to them, odds are other potential employers

Shoes

Shoes Shania Twain Tell me about it... Ooh! Men. Have you ever tried to figure them out? Huh, me too, but I ain't got no clue How 'bout you? Men are like shoes Made to confuse Yeah, there's so many of 'em I don't know which ones to choose (yeah, yeah, yeah) Ah, sing it to me If you agree There's the kind made for runnin' The sneakers and the low down heels The kind that will keep you on your toes And every girl knows how that feels (yeah, yeah, yeah) Ouch, ah, sing it with me Chorus: You've got your kickers and your ropers Your everyday loafers, some that you can never find You've got your slippers and your zippers Your grabbers and your grippers Man, don't ya hate that kind? Some you wear in, some you wear out Some you wanna leave behind Sometimes you hate 'em And sometimes you love 'em I guess it all depends on which way you rub 'em But a girl can never have too many of 'em It's amazing what a little polish will do... Men ar

Julie & Julia

Today Megan (my cousin) took me to Julie & Julia (we got in free because she works there). It was a really good movie, which made me happy because I had heard some people hadn't liked it and thought it was a slow movie, but I loved it. If you haven't seen the movie the basic premise is that Julie (Powell, the author of the book the movie is based from) works her way through Julia (Childs, the world renowned cook) cookbook. She gives herself 365 days and there were 540-ish recipes in the cookbook. She then wrote a blog about it, which became really famous, she was offered book deals, etc. But the point of the movie was that she decided to do something, gave herself a deadline, accomplished it, and it changed her life. So, when I came home I was 1. Hungry (I can't watch food and not want to eat...its the reason I can't watch the food network) 2. Inspired...I decided to cook something...experimentally too. I made soup that I used canned chicken noodle soup and s